SAINTS 20, SAINT NICK 14
Eagles repeat hopes dashed as New Orleans answers strong first quarter for Foles with 20 unanswered points >>
NEW ORLEANS >> The Eagles put on a show, which is tough for a visitor to do in this town.
But the Eagles faded after methodically scoring two touchdowns in the first quarter, and their season ended slowly and painfully in a 20-14 loss to the Saints in front of a crowd of 73,027.
The Eagles fought to their last breath. When Wil Lutz missed a 52-yard field goal attempt with 2:58 left, the Eagles had pretty good field position at their own 42yard line.
Nick Foles threw a 16yard pass to Zach Ertz, then drew a roughing the passer penalty on Marcus Davenport.
But on second-and-10 at the 27 of New Orleans, Foles’ pass skidded through the hands of the normally sure-handed Alshon Jeffery to Marshon Lattimore, who had another interception.
Seconds later the Saints’ defense was posing in the Philly end zone.
“I let my teammates down,” Jeffery said. “I let the city of Philadelphia down. That’s on me. We’ll be back next year for sure. One play don’t define me. I mean, all of the greats, they have missed game-winning shots . ... It’s part of football. I just hated the way it happened in the playoffs and it was the final moment.”
Added Eagles coach Doug Pederson: “It’s really hard because he’s so down. But for me, it’s about staying positive. He’s made many, many big catches for us this season and he will continue to do that. He’s just got to keep his head up. Don’t let one play define you. It’s not who he is. He’s too good of a player. He’ll embrace it obviously and he’ll be better for it, but I told him to keep his head up and keep playing.”
It looked like the Eagles might get one more possession with about a minute left but Alvin Kamara rushed for 12 yards on third-and-10.
The top-seeded Saints entertain the second-seeded Los Angeles Rams next Sunday for the NFC championship.
“Listen, they got off to a fast start, they’re a great team,” Saints quarterback Drew Brees said. “Nick Foles has done a phenomenal job for them. We knew it was going to be different than last time.”
The Kansas City Chiefs host the New England Patriots in the nightcap.
The Eagles took a 14-10 lead into the intermission. It was a tale of two quarters, a dominant first and an injury-riddled second.
The Saints got their first lead with 1:40 left in the third quarter. And the Eagles made them work for it.
Thomas caught a twoyard pass from Brees to cap an 18-play, 92-yard touchdown march that officially consumed 11-minutes, 29-seconds but seemed like a lifetime to the Eagles.
It gave the Saints a 17-14 advantage.
Brees converted tough third down after tough third down due to 25 yards worth of penalties — one of which wiped out an apparent TD — as Carl Cheffers and his crew staked out their territory.
The biggest play was when Brees stepped up in the pocket and zipped a 20yard strike to Thomas on third-and-16 from the 32yard line of the Eagles to set up the go-ahead tally.
Thomas beat Cre’Von LeBlanc on the throw, just not by much. LeBlanc flipped him on his spine just to see if he’d hold on.
LeBlanc intercepted Brees’ first pass of the game, a deep ball intended for Ted Ginn to give the Eagles a spark.
Foles guided the Eagles on a 76-yard scoring march, completing all six of his passes, including a 37-yarder to Jordan Matthews for a 7-0 lead.
Foles completed his first seven attempts for 83 yards, one TD and a 155.7 rating, and he reached the ball over the pile to get the Eagles their second TD and a 14-0 lead with 4:37 left in the first quarter.
Brees started 0-for-3 with the pick.
Offensive guard Brandon Brooks was carted off with a leg injury and replaced by Stefen Wisniewski on the right side.
Rasul Douglas, the cornerback, also was carted off yet returned. It was that kind of day.
At that point, the Eagles were short of healthy bodies, just as in their earlier loss to the Saints this season.
With half the Philly defense injured, Brees hit Thomas for 40 yards to the 24-yard line of the Eagles. On fourth-and-goal at the 2, Brees lobbed a scoring pass to Keith Kirkwood for the Saints’ first points.
The biggest play on the 79-yard drive was a fake punt on fourth-and-one at the Saints’ 30. Taysom Hill, the protector, took the snap and picked up four yards.
The Superdome crowd, true to its reputation, brought it. The Eagles’ offensive timing was off so drastically in the fourth quarter, it looked like Foles was playing in slow motion.